The revelation by a study conducted by the UN Population Fund in 58 countries identified as suffering from a crisis in human resources for health should send Africa’s health stakeholders to the drawing table. According to the report, these countries accounted for 58 % of the entire world’s births in 2009; 80% of stillbirths around the world; 82% of new-born deaths and 91% of maternal deaths. Sadly, two-thirds of the surveyed countries are in Africa.
Africa's population is growing quickly and is estimated to reach 2.1 billion by 2050. That a continent with a rapidly growing population should experience a dearth of midwives is calamitous.
Armed with the knowledge that prevention is better than cure, Africa’s citizenry ought to arm themselves with prevention techniques, observe proper hygiene and strive to deliver under professionals. African governments ought to consider the African people as the ultimate resource and take the lead in ensuring their well being. They should not surrender this responsibility to international well-wishers alone. They ought to create environments that will spur productivity among the citizenry with a view of raising a critical mass of people that will generate funds to meet health budgets as well as tailor education to meet the health needs of the continent.
Although the amount of money that Multinational companies put in research and operations cannot be underestimated, it will be prudent if they teamed up with local scientists to set up institutions that will harness the existing medical ingredients and knowledge in Africa.
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